Diablo Ninebark, a Beautiful Ornamental Shrub

While wandering last fall at a produce store, my wife and I decided to head out behind the building to look at some trees and shrubs that the store sold. While not entirely certain what we wanted, we were hoping for something a little unusual and with some color.

After looking past the selection of evergreens and green-leafed trees, we stumbled upon a lone plant that had purplish bark and leaves. I was unfamiliar with this plant whose label read "Diablo Ninebark". The price was right for this approximately 3-foot tall shrub, so we bought it.

I planted it at the far left corner of our front shrubbery bed, which allowed the plant plenty of light. I have not watered it, as it seems to grow well with the water supplied from a summer of Michigan rain.

In the late spring/early summer, the Ninebark began to bloom with beautiful white flowers that grew in clusters. The whiteness of the flowers really set off the deep purple of the bark and leaves of this attractive plant.

In the fall, the bark exfoliates, revealing several shades of brown and purple. The exfoliation is not messy, and will not leave bark shavings all over your shrubbery bed. Instead, it gives the shrub an uniqueness, as I have not seen many other landscape shrubs produce this sort of effect.

Our Diablo Ninebark is now about five feet tall. According to the information on the label that was attached to the plant when we bought it, a Diablo Ninebark can grow to around 8-10 feet and spread out a similar distance. According to about.com, the Ninebark can grow in planting zones 3-7, which is roughly southern Canada to as far south as northern Texas.

The Diablo Ninebark is a beautiful ornamental plant that can serve as a showpiece for your landscaping, especially when planted in a bed with lighter colored trees and shrubs, as the dark purple of the Ninebark will be accented. About.com also notes that the shrub can be used as a summer privacy barrier when many of the shrubs are planted close together.

Finding a Diablo Ninebark may be a bit of a challenge. Don't expect to trot on down to Lowe's or Home Depot and find this plant. Try calling the larger nurseries in your area to see if they carry it. If the nurseries near you do not carry it, you may have to try an online nursery, such as naturehill.com. However you manage to acquire this shrub, it will be a beautiful addition to almost any landscaping.